60 Jor The races of Existence DEPLORE it as we may, the fact remains that only a limited fevv know and practice the art of gracious Ii ving. Means-sensibility-and a gift for social intercourse-these are the in- dispensable pre-requisites. There are, to be sure, men and 'Nom- en of impeccable taste, but the slim- mest of pocketbooks, who manage to live zestfully-if precariously. Yet they are necessarily shut off from the fun flavor of those pursuits and diver- tissements which the words '"gracious Ii ving P imply. There are also, to be sure, men and women possessed, even in these days, of plenteous purses, who may buy gen- erously the things they want-but, alas, the things they want are not the appurtenances of gracious living. It is from an innate and trained sensibility and taste that comes the unerring selec- tion of those appointments and envi- ronments that make life beautiful and spaCIOUS. And finally there are the people of both means and taste-\vho, hovvever, in the manner of their living lead cloistered and sequestered existences. It is a zest for association with like- minded people of taste and refinement, \vith whom one may share the pleas- ures of social existence, vv hich brings gracious living to the fullest of its op- portunities. l\Teans, taste and a lively apprecia- tion of the pleasures to be 'Non with \velcome friends-vvith such un bend- iug yardsticks before us, is it any won- der that out of the 120,000,000 of ..L\,mericans a mere handful (numeri- cally speaking) can achieve gracious living? But again, is it any wonder that this all-influential handful find a compelling appeal in the new maga- l:ine that is Arts & Decoration? Only 20,000 of them, there are. But in the pages of this modern and spirited ll1agazine they find Decoration a back- ground and setting for the carrying on of gracious and spacious existences. And surrounding Decoration, in this magê.lzine i:-; a lively concern vvith vvell-rounded living programs; ,vith play, games, hospitality and entertain- ment; \vith travel and the theatre and the arts; with, in short, all that is making the establishment of beautiful homes in America an art and a tra- dition. AND eem/l 578 MADISON AVEN1JE, NEW YORK FEBRUARY 4, 1933 ness about it not unlike that to be found in some of D. H. Lawrence's writings (indeed, Mr. Davies is obviously under his infl uence ). On the whole you might find it worth reading. N ow, how do you stand on books of reminiscence? I imagine you're pretty well bored with them by now, for certainly in the past few years enough W orld War generals, diplo- matists, Victorian novelists, novelists' wives and ex-wives, actors and actress- es, and eminent personages generally ha ve told us, modestly or otherwise, of the parts they played in world events. Yet I have four more to chronicle this week, two of which you need hardly bother about and two that would well repay your reading. The first two are "The Decade of Illusion," by Maurice Sachs, translated by Gwladys Matthews Sachs and pub- lished by Knopf; and "Memories of a IVlisspent Youth," by Grant Richards, published by Harper. The first is a kind of guide to the artistic life of Paris in the past decade, as compendious -but also, unfortunately, as dry-as a Baedeker. Mr. Richards' book, on the other hand, is brightly and amusing- ly written, and would have much to recommend it if it were not for the fact that it is about London and the literary life of the eighteen-nineties, and what with the writings of Roth- enstein, Benson, E. V. Lucas, and so on, we have grown almost too fa- 111iliar with all that went on in that epoch. The other two are "British Agent," by R. H. Bruce Lockhart, published by Putnam, a recital of the author's experiences as a British consular agent at Moscow during the war years and the first months of the revolution, frankly , vividly, and excitingly told; and "Log of the Sea," by Felix Ries- enherg, published hy Harcourt, Brace, a seaman's chronicle of life under sail and steam, full of bright sea pictures and fragmentary recollections of old shipmaster$, forecastle characters, and stormy adventures. Both books are very enjoyable. -R. M. C. . In Croton, seven years ago, settled Economist Stuart Chase, his wife M ar- garet Hatfield, Elizabeth Moos, a former teacher at Walden and other modern schools, and her husband Robert Imandt, violinist, onetime French Army man, camp director. Between them Miss Hatfield and Miss Moos had three chil- dren.-Tilne. Pull yourself together, Time!